The Sounds of Silence
by KaliCali77
Summary: Fires, a car accident, her parents, a kidney transplant, and a tall, lanky mystery man keep bringing Alice Cullen and Jasper Whitlock together. Will Jasper, the Forks' fire invetigater be able to solve the mystery before Alice, the owner of the Fire Pit Bar, is killed? 'M' for violence & a lemon or two toward the end; 500 - 2,000 words per post; no beta; 2nd chance for this story
1. The Sounds of Silence Prologue

_I do not own the Twilight story or any of its characters or settings._

_I just like messing with Stephenie Meyer's characters in my own plots!_

**The Sounds of Silence**

"Ben, here's the last case of beer."

"Thanks, Sam. Can you put it with the others in the back?" Alice chirped surprising him by popping up from behind the bar.

He shook his head as he walked around the edge of the bar to the storage room to drop off the case. After he came back out and walked over to where I was cleaning, he laid his head on his folded arms on top of the bar. "Alice, what the hell are you doing here? Don't you know the meaning of taking the day off? Going out on a date? Going to a club and having a one night stand?"

"Why would I? Do you really think that between the scars on my back and the way I got them I would be into a one night stand?" She asked. Then, she pointed up to the ceiling. "Besides, I love this place. I live upstairs."

"Is that why you refuse to put in a karaoke machine?" He asked with a smirk not wanting to discuss her scars.

"No, I refuse to get one because you boys can't sing." She said as she began wiping down the back of the bar. "You seem to forget, I grew up around firefighters. You all are notoriously hot, but you can't sing to save you lives."

Sam cringed. "You're right, I am hot."

Alice threw her rag at him, laughing. "Keep that kind of talk for your wife and get your ass back over to the firehouse."

Sam just caught the rag and smiled. "Emily is not a jealous woman. She lets me share my hotness with the world. But you are right; your father could make the deaf cry with his singing. Everyone hates it when he sings in the firehouse shower."

She laughed, hearing her father singing in the shower in her memories from when she was a kid.

Sam laughed and pushed off the bar to head back to the firehouse. When he got to the door, he turned and yelled, "I expect a free one of those beers when I get off in sixteen hours, Alice."

"I know. You always do." She called to his back as he opened the door. "By the way, thanks for walking _**ALL **_the way across the street to help Ben carry them in."

* * *

"Alice, wake up."

Shake.

"Alice, you need to wake up. Please, wake up."

Shake. Cough. Shake.

"ALICE! WAKE THE FUCK UP!"

Shake. Cough. Shake. Cough. Shake. Cough.

"Sam, it is time to go! The floor is going to collapse soon."

"I can't get Alice to wake up!"

"Just grab her! I have her meds. Get her out, Sam!"

She felt Sam's strong arms slide underneath her shoulders and legs. Then, he hastily lifted her away from her bed.

Then, she heard and felt a resounding crash shake and echo throughout her body, her home, her livelihood, and her world.

* * *

_Author's Note~_

_I was not happy with how this story was playing out the first time. I took it down the old story. I am reworking and reposting it based on the same outline I used before. I am not going to post on any set schedule, but the rest of the story is mostly written so they shouldn't be posted too far apart. All of the chapters will be between 500 and 2,000 words._

_This story is going to be darker than my other stories, but I love it and where it will lead. I hope you will stay for the ride. _

_I don't have a beta so please forgive my mistakes. If you politely let me know, I'll fix the mistakes as quick as I can. I hope you will __enjoy this story. Let me know what you think, like, love, or hate!_

_~KaliCali77_

_P.S. This story was inspired by a banner created by Christag_Banner . __She has it on her Stories Banners page of her blog ( www. christagbanners. blogspot. com ) or you can see it at pbckt pW. R1IbGs Just remove the spaces._


	2. Back at the Almost Beginning

_I do not own the Twilight story or any of its characters or settings._

_I just like messing with Stephenie Meyer's characters in my own plots!_

**Back at the Almost Beginning**

Alice stood in the doorway between her apartment and the stairs leading down to the street. She looked carefully around her place before she headed downstairs to open her bar for the very first time.

Her apartment is small, but cozy with just enough room for her. To the immediate right from the door she was standing in is the living area. It held a three seated, black leather couch making a corner with a red, micro-suede chaise lounge. A flat screen television was attached to the wall with floating shelves next to it for all of the electronics that went with it.

Moving her eyes past the living area, she took in the kitchenette. There was a stainless steel microwave, stove, and refrigerator. It was just big enough for one person to work in which is fine with her because she doesn't cook much anyways.

The next room was the reason the kitchenette was so small. The bathroom was designed Alice's mother and fit for a princess. There was a large, square sink set into a quartz counter top with a brushed nickel faucet. The shower stall was across the room from that and housed five different shower heads. Her dad said he might run over for showers when he was on duty at the firehouse. The tub next to the shower had several jets along the sides and was big enough for three people to sit, two people to fool around in, or one person to float in.

The bedroom area was filled with her king size bed that she had since high school. She still loved it. It has gotten her through the cramps of her first period, slumber parties for her best three girls, excitedly getting ready for first dates in high school and college, several break ups with those same guys, and the first time she had sex. It was covered in her silvery blue, satin comforter that was made for her by her grandmother before she died. She could only see the parts that were hanging down because the top was covered in a mound of clothes that she had rejected to wear tonight.

Thinking of tonight, Alice shut the door and locked it. She ran down the stairs and bounced out of the street-level door. She was so excited and energized that she ran smack into her dad. He steadied her while his rich, baritone laugh filled the air warmed her to the core.

"I let everyone inside. Your mother is watching the bar along with your waitresses." He said resuming him thinking stance with his legs shoulder width apart and his arms crossed. He looked intimidating to anyone, well to anyone, but his little girl. Alice nodded her head subtly and stood next to him soaking in his strength.

"Alice, are you sure you want to do this?" Carlisle Cullen, the Port Angeles Fire Chief, asked after they stood with their backs to the fire house across the street for a few moments. "It is not too late to take that marketing job in Seattle."

"I want to do this, Daddy." She said again. She had said that phrase so many times she was thinking about recording on her phone so she could stop having to actually say it. "You want me to take a job all the way in Seattle? Seattle, you know, the where you would rarely get to see me. Besides, Dr. Gerandy will worry me to death giving me tons of pamphlets about avoiding stress." When he sighed, Alice continued. "Besides, it is too late to take that job because I own a bar. I own a bar that you helped me buy, that mom helped decorate, and that your guys helped me fill up with liquor."

"I just want you to be successful and happy in your life." He said giving her a hug around her shoulders. "You are my little girl and I only want the best for you."

"Then, be happy for me, Daddy." The small pixie said as she went up on her toes to kiss his cheek. "I'm happy and this bar will be successful, even if I only have fire fighters as patrons. Plus, working on the bar has helped me to set goals for myself and be healthier than I have been in a long time. I have wonderful parents, great friends, and a soon to be thriving business."

They were caught in their father-daughter moment bubble by her mum, Esme Cullen. She swung open the bar door and leaned against the door frame. "Are you two done having your moment yet? The childish ones are watching out of the windows. They are taking turns at faking your voices and having ridiculous conversations that are not at all appropriate. These firemen want beer. I am not the one with the liquor license, the ability to fill a glass from the tap, or the skill to open the bottles."

"That's what the waitresses are there to help with, Esme." Carlisle said laughing at his wife.

Alice just smiled sheepishly as she shook her head and headed in. At the door, she turned around. "Coming, Dad?"

"Of course, I am." He said starting to follow his daughter. "Question, since I did help buy the bar, do I get free drinks?"

She rolled my eyes and linked arms with her father as she laughed at him. "Mom would kill me, but you do get the half off daddy discount." Alice said as she closed the door behind them to go pour the Fire Pit's first beer for her dad.

* * *

_Author's Note~_

_I am very excited about this story. I have had a couple of bad years & this story has helped me get the angst out. It takes a couple of twists and not everything is explained right away. Some things cannot be known until the end._

_I don't have a beta, so all of the mistakes I own. If you find any big mistakes, send me a private message & I can fix it. I hope you enjoyed the first actual chapter of this story. Let me know what you think, like, love, or hate!_

_~KaliCali77_


	3. Two Weeks After Fire Pit Opening

_I do not own the Twilight story or any of its characters or settings._

_I just like messing with Stephenie Meyer's characters in my own plots!_

**Two Weeks after the Fire Pit Opening**

Alice waited extremely impatiently for the nurse to call her back to an exam room. She hated to still keep coming to the doctor even a year and a half after her surgery, but when she had a kidney transplant she was forced to do what the doctor's told her she had to do.

After she had found all of the differences in the picture trivia in five consecutive People magazines, the nurse finally called her back to an exam room. The nurse asked Alice a few routine questions before leaving the room. While Alice waited for the Dr. Gerandy, she changed into an exam gown. The doctor knocked on the door and the impatient young woman told him sharply to come in.

"Morning, Mary Alice. How have you been feeling lately?" The doctor asked in his gentle voice.

"I am stronger, faster, and more limber than before this happened to me." She answered quickly. "Does this mean I can go and not have to come back?"

"How are things going at the bar?" Dr. Gerandy asked ignoring her blatant attempt to leave and avoid having her blood drawn. He picked up a tray of sterile instruments and began prepping her arm for blood tests. "Are you getting enough rest?"

"The bar is great. I love it. Did you and your wife have a good time the other night?" She said smiling and looking at the ceiling. She was trying to avoid another one of his questions, shivering from the cold sanitizing wipe, and not look at the long needle he had in his hand.

"We did. That is a nice, little place you have for yourself." He said sticking the needle in her and beginning to fill the first of five vials. "But don't think I didn't notice you ignored my question. You need your rest and not to begin drinking the alcohol that you serve. You know as well as I do your grandfather's love of alcohol which means you can easily become addicted. Besides, it has only been eighteen months since your kidney transplant."

"I am resting or I will be more now that I have a weekend manager to help me out. Plus, I am not drinking. I have to be the only person that didn't drink on her 21st birthday eleven months ago. I drink pomegranate and orange juice along with lots of water and milk."

"That calms my worries some. Plus, if my memory is correct you were told you could have one small glass of champagne or wine on your birthday." He said with a teasing smile. "Now, who are you, the perfectionist, trusting with your bar?"

"Your future son-in-law, Ben Cheney," I said sheepishly. When he looked at me with the surprised expression I thought was coming, I quickly explained what Ben had told me. "He wants a job for the weekends to pay for the honeymoon. Then, he wants to make a down payment on a house."

"My wife and I were planning on buying them a house two blocks from ours." He said filling the second to last vial.

"I know, but I think he wants to show you and your wife that he can provide for Angela."

"I always liked that kid. He has always been so good to my step daughter, Angela." He said finishing drawing my blood for standard rejection and other screening tests I have to have at every doctor's visit.

"Well, when they talk about reception places, tell them they have the bar for free and half price drinks. All you will have to bring is the food, unless they want a dive food reception."

"Alice, you can't afford that. That is a lot of revenue you are throwing a way there. You are just starting out."

"Please, with all you and your family have done for me and mine for over the years. It is my wedding present to them. Plus, my mom said she would decorate the place for them. Angela is her assistant after all."

With a huge smile on his face, he said with a chuckle, "Alice, dear, that is very sweet of you. I might even allow you a SMALL glass or two of champagne at the reception."

Alice bit her lower lip as she gave him a small, demure smile. Glancing down to the floor she asked him the question that had been plaguing her mind, "Doc, will I ever be fully normal again? Normal meaning I won't have to take those pills everyday and watch you act like a vampire twice a year."

The doctor sat on his rolling stool and got very close to his patient. Holding her hands, sandwiched between his, he said, "Alice, I know this is hard for you. One day, you were a normal college senior taking a load and a half of classes and the next you was almost dead barely surviving on dialysis. Then, after a couple of months, you were rushed into emergency kidney transplant surgery. You didn't ask for this, nor do you deserve this."

"But I still have to deal with it." Alice interrupted quietly as she turned her head to hide the tears that were forming in her eyes. "After the transplant, I had to come see you every three days for two months. Then, a visit once a week for three months before it changed to twice a month for another three months. I have slowly worked my way until now when I only have to come once every six months."

He turned her face back to his. "Yes, you have worked hard to get here. You are a model patient, mostly. You just need to get more rest. Unfortunately, you will have to take those pills for the rest of your life. The good news is I only have to be a vampire three more times for another eighteen months and then, you only have to come visit me. Can you handle that?"

She nodded her head and wiped away a single tear off her cheek.

"Okay, I will see you next week at the bar. I want to check out this dive food for my step daughter's reception. Truth be told, her mother and I wanted dive food at our wedding, but my mother-in-law would not allow it."

_Author's Note~_

_I am not a doctor or nurse or transplant patient. I am guessing at what happens after a transplant surgery._

_I hope you are enjoying this story. It is snippets of the characters lives as they intersect and explain their pasts._ _I hope you will __enjoy this story. Let me know what you think, like, love, or hate!_

_~KaliCali77_


	4. Organic Labor Induction

_I do not own the Twilight story or any of its characters or settings._

_I just like messing with Stephenie Meyer's characters in my own plots!_

**Organic Labor Induction**

In the four months since the Fire Pit had opened most, if not all, of the firemen had been stopping in for a beer when their 24 hour shifts end at seven in the evening. Alice enjoyed listening to their crazy stories about past fires, firehouse pranks, and actually climbing up a ladder to get the mayor's daughter's kitten out of a tree.

As Sam and several other firemen dragged themselves into the bar at 7:45, Alice knew they had been double teaming with the oncoming shift on a fire. She called over to them. "Give me two minutes and I will have your beers ready. I didn't want them to get warm."

Sam, behaving like the gentleman that he always has been, ambled over to help carry the drinks to his firemen brothers.

"Sam, how's Emily doing? She didn't sound too good on the phone this morning. She kept insisting everything was fine. I am just worried about her and my latest excuse for shopping." Alice asked concerned about her friend and Sam's wife.

"She and the baby are doing pretty well. She has to stay off her feet until she delivers though. The baby accidently cracked a rib with her foot." Sam answered shaking his head at his stubborn wife and his unborn child's accident.

"She only has about two weeks left. At least, it isn't too much longer."

"Yeah, but Emily is very independent and hates being stuck in bed. Plus, her mother arrived yesterday morning to help which is driving Emily's stress level up."

"I will get her greasy favorites ready for you take home as long as you promise to call me when she goes into labor." Alice said laughing at the mental image of her friend who is always on the move having to stay still. After Alice gave Sam the beers, she popped her head in the kitchen and asked the chef to get a sampling of greasy food for Sam to take home in ten minutes.

Suddenly, Alice remembered something that could help Emily with her bed rest situation. She called to Sam and excitedly waved him over to the bar. "Hey, do you remember Emily and I talking about the rough pregnancy my college roommate, Bella, had?" He stared into space for a second before slowly nodding his head yes. "When Bella was about two weeks away from her due date, her obstetrician told her to have a lot of sex to increase the chance of inducing early labor naturally. The moment she and her husband got home, they started doing it like rabbits. She went into labor and had her little girl within forty-eight hours of that doctor's appointment."

"Are you serious?" He asked excitedly. Alice nodded giggling at his excitement. "Be quick with the food then, woman. I have a wife to get home to. Plus, now I have an excuse to send my mother-in-law to a late dinner and a movie."

"Mary Alice Cullen, what did you do? Why are you handing out relationship advice?" Chief Carlisle Cullen, not Alice's daddy, barked as he slammed the door of the bar open and strolled into the bar.

Not exactly sure what he which advice he was talking about, Alice attempted to play innocent. "Hello, Daddy! How are things at the firehouse today?"

"Don't you 'Hello, Daddy' me!" He grumbled reaching the bar and taking his I-am-in-charge stance that has been in many newspaper picture of him in charge at fires.

"What are you grumbling about now, Chief Cullen?" Alice mocked. "Is this because you finally realized I helped mom talk you into redoing the kitchen?"

"No, this is not about the kitchen. This is about you giving Sam sex advice. I cannot believe that my little girl told Sam to have sex with Emily right after his last shift." He thought for a second before saying, "Though I am not happy about the kitchen thing either now that I know that you betrayed me again."

"First of all, Daddy, I am not a little girl and I didn't betray you! I just helped to make your life simpler and less combative by making mom happy." She said getting him a glass of her pomegranate juice because she knew he was still on duty. "As for Sam and** his** **wife** having sex, I don't see how the concerns either of us."

"It concerns me when he has to leave in the middle of his shift almost two weeks before his wife's due date because my daughter encouraged him to fuck his wife like a rabbit."

"I would never encourage Sam to fuck his wife like a rabbit. Emily is one of my best friends. However, I did tell him what Bella's doctor told her when she was impatient for her delivery date." Alice said defending herself. She placed her hand over her father's on the edge in the bar. "Emily was in pain and placed on bed rest, Dad. Her little girl, Leah, broke her rib. Wouldn't you have done everything possible if I had done that to mom?"

He took a drink of his juice. "I hate it. I absolutely hate it when you and your mother use logic against me." Then, his cell started ringing and he answered it quickly. "Shit! There is a fire out in the woods ten miles outside of town. Forks and the Reservation guys are coming over to help. I hope that Edward kid is driving their truck tonight. He has even more of a lead foot than you." He said in a rush before kissing his daughter's forehead and jogging to the door. "Call your mom and tell her I won't be home until late tomorrow or even the next day."

* * *

_Author's Note~_

_I rewrote parts of the last post with some very helpful information from MEINWPG. She helped me a lot with the information she gave me. _

_This post is a little bit of filler. Normally, I don't like these kinds of posts, but it helps set up the next couple._

_FYI, my daughter really did crack three of my ribs during my pregnancy. My doctor did tell me to try having lots of sex to induce labor before they had to try drugs._

_Let me know what you think: like, love, or hate!_

_~KaliCali77_


	5. 4 AM Rude Awakening

_I do not own the Twilight story or any of its characters or settings._

_I just like messing with Stephenie Meyer's characters in my own plots!_

**4 AM Rude Awakening**

"Rosalie McCarty, did you know I NEVER wanted a BITCH for a cousin?" Alice said roughly pulling her pillow over her head after she yanked the blankets off.

"Do you really think I want to see you half naked in a tank top and panties at 4 o'clock in the morning?" The blonde bombshell asked smacking her cousin hard on the bum. "Now, get up! We have to get moving."

"I just went to bed an hour and forty-five minutes ago. Let me sleep. I don't want to go shopping in the city. I don't want to go hiking. I don't want to do anything, but sleep." Alice said shaking her hand in the air in the general direction she thought her cousin was.

Rosalie plopped down ungracefully on the other side of the bed. "Alice, do you thing I would risk waking the demon pixie for something as trivial as shopping?"

This one question made Alice uncover her head to look at her older cousin. The blonde had tear tracks running down her face. Alice sat up so quickly that she got dizzy. After shaking her head, she asked, "Rose, what's going on?"

"You know about the fire in the woods, right?"

"Rose, I don't believe in killing the messenger, but I do believe in maiming them. If you don't spit out whatever you are not trying to say, I will go all kinds of demon pixie on your ass."

"I have to take you to the hospital. Something happened to your dad."

Alice jumped off her bed, steadied herself again, and threw on the first cloths she could find.

They ran down the stairs and to Rosalie's car. Rosalie started driving like a bat out of hell.

Once they pulled out, Alice was grateful that it was Saturday and Ben would be in the cover the bar. "Why did you come get me? Why didn't they just call me?"

"You turned the sound off on your cell. Besides, I was already going to be passing by your place. Emmett called me and asked me to get you. He didn't want you driving anyways." She answered almost blowing a stop sign.

Alice was out of the BMW convertible before it was fully parked. She burst through the emergency room doors and ran toward the nurse's station. A human shield, Emmett blocked her path.

"Where… is… how… my… dad?" Alice asked through gasping breaths as she held a stitch in her side.

"He is in surgery. Let me take you up to the waiting room." He said giving her a giant bear hug cutting off her ability to breath.

Alice paced while waiting for Rosalie and then, the elevator to arrive. She bounced in the elevator on the way up to the surgical floor. The doors opened and she shot down the hall to the surgery waiting room. Rounding a corner, she could hear a quiet buzz coming from the room, but she didn't expect half of the department to be sitting in there. There were also a few members of the Forks and Reservation littering the room. The fire must be out or very well contained.

"Mom, where are you? Mom…" Alice said loudly because she couldn't see her auburn hair among the crowd.

Sam quickly came over to her, hopping over sprawled out legs. He enveloped her in giant hug, almost cutting off her breath again. He kissed the top of her head and whispered, "She couldn't stand it in here. She is with Emily and Leah. Do you want to go down there? I'll come get you when the doctor comes out."

"No, I'll stay." He bent down and looked at her skeptically. She placed her hands gently on his cheeks. With a faint smile, Alice said, "I want to stay."

He pulled Alice back across the room to the seat he had just vacated and forced her into it. He sat down on the floor and leaned back against her legs.

For the next few hours, random guys in the department would ask if she wanted something to eat or drink as they went to get themselves something. Alice would either continue to stare unseeingly or decline the offer. She just sat staring at the back of Sam's head and played with his hair.

Alice could feel most of the guys that were still awake randomly look at her and then, look away quickly. But she felt two sets of eyes staring at her, almost boring holes into the top of her skull. She looked up in the direction of the eyes. They were all the way across the room near the door, but still one set locked eyes with hers.

These eyes held anger and pain. They were golden eyes surrounded by a face that was vaguely familiar even though she knew that she didn't know the man. He appeared to be relatively good looking even under the soot and fire gear. He had wild, bronze colored hair. She guessed that he was about 6 feet tall and lanky, but he had lean muscles and a clear pale skin very much like her own skin.

She blinked breaking their connection and then, purposefully looked at the other man. It felt like his eyes pierced her soul when she locked eyes with his. His eyes were full of compassion, sympathy, wonder, and lust. He had wavy, dark blonde hair that came to down to his jaw-line and cinnamon colored eyes. He was slightly taller than the pained man next to him, but he had the same lanky, lean muscled body.

Emmett, who was sitting next to her in a chair with Rosalie in front of him on the floor, noticed where she was looking, more like staring.

With the smallest hint of humor in his voice, he leaned over and whispered in his cousin-in-law's ear. "Alice, your father is in surgery and you are staring at two guys?"

After lowering her eyes back to Sam's hair quickly and blushing, I whispered back to Emmett. "I was trying to figure out who those two are. I don't think I have ever met them before."

"They are relatively new to the Forks Fire Department." He said. I looked at him questioningly, so he continued. "The crazy haired guy is Edward Masen. He joined the department three or four months ago. He is a bit of a know-it-all, but is still a good guy. Actually, he is the guy that carried your dad out of the fire's path."

Alice stifled a sob at hearing her father couldn't even get out of the fire's way under his own power. Emmett wrapped his arm around her shoulders while Sam turned, crouching in front of her to hold onto her small hands tightly in his larger ones. After fighting for control of her sobs for a few moments, Alice glanced up to see the crazy haired man staring at her. She mouthed the words 'Thank you' to him before snuggling back into Emmett's side.

A few minutes later, Alice realized that Emmett hadn't told her who the man with the piercing eyes was. "Who is the other guy, Emmett?" She asked quietly.

"The other guy… oh yeah. The other guy is Jasper Whitlock. He has been with the department for about a year. He is a bit odd. He grew up and was a firefighter in Galveston, Texas, for five years. He got fed up with the sun, heat, dry weather, and flat desert."

"So, he moved here, one of the wettest, sunless, coldest, mountainous places in the continental US?"

"I told you that he is a bit odd. He is a great guy and one of the top investigators for Forks. Your dad trusts him. He will go out to help figure out this fire after he lets the doctors clear him for smoke inhalation."

Before Alice could respond, a surgeon walked into the waiting room. As he took in the room, he removed his surgical mask from his face. She knew down to her very core that her father's injuries were horrible. Dr. Banner, the hospital and Washington's top orthopedic surgeon, was the one operating on her father.

She tapped Sam on the shoulder because he had gone back to dozing and resting his head on her knee. He jumped up startled and tore across the room to go get my mom from the maternity ward once he realized what was going on. She rushed after him to the door. Dr. Banner and many of the firefighters looked nervous since she was leaping over the sprawled legs from the guys sitting on the floor. She chanced a look up to see Edward Masen and Jasper Whitlock's faces wrinkled with concern and almost faltered.

Alice stopped just before Dr. Banner. "How is my dad? Is he okay? Will he live?" She asked frantically.

"Alice, slow down." He said placing a placating hand on her shoulder. She immediately shook it off. "Are you sure you want to know right now? Don't you want to wait for your mother?"

"Just tell me!" She spat with a steel resolve. She felt Emmett and Rosalie place their hands on her shoulders to try to calm her down enough to listen properly.

Dr. Banner nodded his head and with a voice loud enough that the whole room could hear, he started to explain. "Carlisle is very much alive and will be so for a very long time."

"But…" Alice said bringing his attention to only the small, young woman. He shot her a quizzical look. "What is 'the but'? It feels like there is a 'but' coming."

"You are right, Alice. I want to wait for your mother though."

"Answer me." She said with such fierceness in her voice that the man could only obey.

"He sustained an injury to his lower spinal cord. It has caused a paralysis in his legs."

"He's a paraplegic?" Emmett asked in surprise.

"I am afraid so." Dr. Banner said as Alice's mom and Sam ran into the waiting room.

Esme Cullen continued to her daughter and wrapped her arms around her. She released Alice, but grabbed her hand before she turned to Dr. Banner.

"You couldn't fix his back, could you?" She asked. He shook his head no and left the room.

Alice could see everything going on around her. She could hear everything that was being said. She squeezed her eyes shut willing everything to go away because she just couldn't deal with it. She began to sway.

Suddenly, she was being picked up and held tightly against a chest that smelled like smoke. A voice that she didn't recognize whispered to her as he was led down the hall.

"Alice, it is going to be fine."

"Take deep breaths for me, Alice."

"You still have your father."

"Open your eyes, please."

Alice chose to ignore the rushing of her mom, Emmett, Rosalie, and the doctors. The southern accent speaking was relaxing to her. It relaxed her until everything was gone.

* * *

_Author's Note~_

_This is where the confusion and drama really starts. There is definitely more to come._

_I really hope you are enjoying this story. Let me know what you think, like, love, or hate!_

_~KaliCali77_


	6. Waking Up and Listening In

_I do not own the Twilight story or any of its characters or settings._

_I just like messing with Stephenie Meyer's characters in my own plots!_

**Waking Up & Listening In**

Alice slowly began to pull herself out of a black fog. She could tell some time had passed since she was last aware of the world. She was no longer in two strong arms and against that thumping chest. There were two heart monitors beeping in synchronized rhythm. The drip on an IV sounded just a smidge off from the heart beats. Her mother was sniffling in a chair to Alice's right.

The door to the room opened and closed. Three sets of feet entered the room. One set was Rosalie's high heels. Alice knew the sound of her cousin's heels almost as much as she knew the sound of her own feet. The other set was large and shuffling along the floor like they were exhausted to the point of falling off. She knew that Rosalie's husband, Emmett, was in the room. The third set's owner spoke before Alice could discern who it was.

"Esme, you need to stop worrying over her. You have no idea how much all of your over-worrying effects her stress and recovery." Dr. Gerandy said trying to snap Alice's mother out of the pity party she was throwing herself.

"Are you sure she is fine?" Alice heard her mom ask, pleading for the doctor to be right.

The doctor answered, "Her vitals are fine. This has nothing to do with her kidney. My guess is not eating this morning with hearing the extent of her father's injuries sent her inside her head for a little while and will be back soon." Then, I felt him pat my leg. "Esme, do you really think it is a good idea having them waking up in the same room?"

Emmett, Rosalie, and my mom chuckled lightly. "Don't you remember that he was in her hospital rooms more than I was? He even kicked me out a few times, so they could have their time together. She is a daddy's girl and has been since day one. He is completely wrapped around her little finger. They wouldn't want to be anywhere else."

"If you are sure," he said skeptically.

I heard several sets of feet moving around and the door open. I felt Rosalie grab my hand and one of her tears hit it.

"She is going to be fine." My mom said softly, probably more for herself than Rosalie.

"I heard what Dr. Gerandy said. It is just scary seeing her in a hospital bed again." Rosalie said sniffling.

"Rosalie, let's go home. We both have been up for far too long." Alice heard Emmett say. "We will come back after we take a nap, when they are awake."

"Can you bring me back a coffee when you come?" She heard her mom ask after yawning loudly.

"Do you want it iced or hot, Aunt Esme?" Rosalie asked, probably remembering how picky she was about her own drinks.

"Surprise me." Esme answered not really caring either way, just grateful that caffeine would be coming her way soon. "Emmett, can you tell me who those two guys are? I mean, the two firefighters staring directly at my daughter?"

"They are a couple of the Forks' firefighters, Edward Masen and Jasper Whitlock. Edward, the reddish haired one, is probably worried that he didn't get Carlisle out fast enough. He probably can't bring himself to look at him. Jasper, the blonde, is probably trying to analyze everything in his mind and has no idea what he is looking at. He went to the fire site for an hour or so and just got back. Carlisle likes him better than the other investigators, even his own. Jasper is waiting for Carlisle to wake up to discuss the fire and what he saw."

"Oh, okay. Please beg of them not to make fun of me if I drool in my sleep on your way out." Alice's mom said in a casual way before climbing up into the bed with her daughter.

* * *

Alice laid there curled up in the uncomfortable hospital bed with her mom for what seemed like hours in silence, but it was probably actually only a few minutes. The beeps and the swooshing sounds came more into focus again. Her mother's even breathing of sleep added nicely to the rhythm in the room. When the door opened again, her eyes flew open and zeroed in on it.

"I thought you were awake. I am sure you heard what the doctor said." Jasper said quietly, making her melt with his smooth, southern accent. "Are you feeling better?"

"Mu…" She started, but had to stop and clear her throat. "I feel much better. Thank you, by the way."

Jasper stepped all the way into the room, shutting the door behind him. He looked at the prone woman quizzically before handing her a glass of cool water with a straw. "What exactly are you thanking me for, Ms. Cullen?"

"I know it was you that caught me when I fainted. I heard your voice whispering in my ear before I was completely out." She explained.

A third voice joined our conversation. "Whitlock, were you hitting on my baby girl, my only child while I was in surgery?"

"Daddy!" Alice gasped as she shot up out of the bed waking her mother by accidently throwing her on the floor. She fumbled her steps before Jasper lent her his arm to help her get to her father.

"You know me, the southern gentleman." Jasper said smirking. "I did sweep her off her feet."

* * *

_Author's Note~_

_Yeah! Alice and Jasper interact for the first time with Alice being conscience. I am not a fan of hospitals, so the next post will not be set there. Let me know what you think, like, love, or hate!_

_~KaliCali77_


	7. Release to a Bar of Typical Boasting Men

_I do not own the Twilight story or any of its characters or settings._

_I just like messing with Stephenie Meyer's characters in my own plots!_

**Released to a Bar of Typical Boasting Men **

"Are they here yet?" Alice called to Sam who was standing at the door peeking out.

He shook his head no while still laughing at a joke Edward Masen had just said.

She resumed wiping the bar and talking to Sam's wife, Emily. "Emily, I love you, but your husband is no help sometimes."

"You have no idea. You should see how he pretends to be sleeping when Leah needs her diaper changed in the middle of the night."

"He is such a typical man!" Alice said laughing with her friend.

"Hey!" Emmett exclaimed as he set a new case of beer on the counter next to Emily to put in the under counter, bar fridge. "I wake up every single time that Rose wants to have sex in the middle of the night."

Rose laughs as she appears at Emily's side. "Ladies, this is a true gentleman."

"Thank you, Rose." Emmett says smiling, ignoring her sarcasm and began to unload the case.

Rolling her eyes at him, Alice turns to her cousin. "Have they called you to say they are almost here?"

"Alice, your parents will be here soon." Rosalie said grabbing her cousin's hand to stop her from cleaning the same spot for the thousandth time. "You see them every day. What is the rush to get them here?"

Alice threw the rag at her cousin's face. "I don't know. Maybe I am all worked up because my dad is finally out of the hospital after two weeks?"

"He is in a wheelchair with scrapes and bruises, but he is alive. He would hate himself if he realized how stressed you are making yourself over his injury." Rose said tossing the rag back.

"She is right, Mary Alice." Esme said surprising the little group. Noticing the looks of surprise at being without Carlisle, she said, "That Jasper fellow from Forks and Sam told me to come inside and they would help your father get out of the car."

"Jasper is here?" Alice squeaked.

Four sets of eyes turned to her with not much shock in their eyes.

"Do you want some cheese, little mouse?" Emmett asked, laughing so loud that the entire bar turned to look at him.

Rose turned around, waving her hands at the looking crowd. "Go back to your own business. You all know my husband. He thinks he is as funny as Jim Carrey. Carlisle will be inside any second now. Watch the door."

Emily gently adjusts Leah in her baby sling and leans closer to Alice across the bar. "Did you just express interest in a guy, a fire fighter to be exact?"

"You haven't had any romantic or even lustful interest in any guy since you were attacked." Rose adds quietly.

"I love that my friends and my cousin take such an interest in my sex life." Alice said hoping to shut them up.

Then, she turned tomato red as her mother counters with, "I believe they are talking about your lack of a sex life, Mary Alice." She smiles softly and adds, "I think it is nice that you are at least thinking about putting yourself out there again. Just no sex before there is at least a little bit of commitment between you two."

"Way to be progressive, Aunt Esme!" Rosalie says giving her aunt a high five behind Emily's back.

"I am the product of a flower child and a hippie. Plus, I did have my own fun before I was married." Esme said causing the entire gathered group to choke on air.

"I hate you all, especially you." Alice said pouting and jerking her chin toward her mother.

"Now, is that anyway for my only daughter to look and talk when I finally roll into her bar?" Carlisle piped up from behind his wife with Sam pushing him.

Alice smiled at her father, "You are the only one that will get a smile from me tonight. Plus, you get to drink from my personal stash."

"Alice, your father cannot have alcohol!" Esme scolded.

Rosalie quickly added, "Forget him. Alice cannot have alcohol!"

"He can have some of my orange and cranberry juice that I have behind the bar." Alice said shaking her head at their lack of faith in her.

Jasper must have slipped in when Alice was being teased because she looked up to see him making his way through the crowd. He made it to the far wall and joined some of the other Fork's fire fighters who had come to help celebrate Carlisle's release from the hospital. She saw Edward hand Jasper a bottle of beer as he glance her direction. Their eyes locked and she froze like she had every time they had run into each other at the hospital.

Alice almost gave herself whiplash as she turned her attention back to her petite mother spinning her much larger husband in a circle to show off his new sporty wheelchair. People were laughing at her antics and patting Carlisle gently on the back and knees. He was smiling and cracking jokes that now he can really sweep Esme off her feet as he looked up at everyone, even those that bent over to talk to him.

Emily gave Sam the baby and came around the bar. She and Rosalie knew exactly what to do. They stood on either side of Alice and linked supportive arms behind her waist.

Emily whispered in her ear, "Hey, Sam has the day off tomorrow. Ben is covering the bar tomorrow evening. I think we need to go out for dinner and a movie, just the four of us."

"Who is just the four of us?" Alice asked.

"The usual crew: you, Rosalie, Angela, and myself." Emily answered. "Personally, I need a couple hours to myself after Sam taking my keys and trapping me at home because he doesn't want Leah to go outside and get too cold."

"I don't know." Alice said biting her lip.

"I do!" Rosalie added.

Angela chimed leaning on the bar after coming out of the back room. "We have some planning to do if we are going to get Japer to do more than check you out from across the room."

"He doesn't just watch her from across the room." Emmett added leaning backward on the bar interrupting the small hen party. "He would watch her ass as she walked away when they passed each other in the hospital."

Esme and Carlisle left after about an hour. Everyone understood that he needed to be home and she needed him home before either of them could truly begin to heal. Sam and Emmett followed them in Emmett's jeep. They two guys joked with everyone that they just wanted to see Carlisle attempt to get up the ramp they had built for him in one try. Everyone knew the truth of that, too. They were tagging along to make sure Carlisle made it safely in his house for Esme, Alice, and Rosalie.

Even though she was really tired and Ben was behind the bar, Alice stuck around downstairs instead of leaving right after her parents. She cleaned the same glass over and over again until her cousin-in-law and her friend returned.

"The rooster has landed." Emmett exclaimed to get Alice's attention after slamming open the bar's door. He had made his way straight to her. "He was actually crowing about letting Esme install an elevator during one of the last renovations."

"He is such a typical man!" Alice said laughing again with her friends.

"Too bad we all know he did it because he couldn't carry her up the stairs while making out in his old age." Sam added laughing and causing everyone in earshot to choke on their drinks.

"Eww!" Alice shrieked. "She told me she wanted it to impress her clients when she moved her office home to be with me while I was recovering."

* * *

_Author's Note~_

_For the couple of people that have asked, this is the fun before another batch of drama. I really hope you are enjoying this story. Let me know what you think, like, love, or hate!_

_~KaliCali77_


	8. Report and Ride Along

_I do not own the Twilight story or any of its characters or settings._

_I just like messing with Stephenie Meyer's characters in my own plots!_

**Report and Ride Along**

Jasper strolled into the Port Angeles firehouse. He was immediately greeted by five men sitting in the lounge around a poker table. Emmett jumped up from the table and walked over to shake hands. Sam continued bouncing a little pink bundle in his arms. The other three guys turned their heads in the newcomer's direction, lifting them in greeting.

"Look who decided to show up for another poker game!" Emmett exclaimed.

Jasper shook his head, laughing the man who closely resembles a giant teddy bear. "Emmett McCarthy! Are you sure your wife wants you to place poker with me again? I only ask because my entire house enjoyed a nice steak dinner on you after last time."

"I have gotten better." Emmett answered walking back to his seat. When Emmett looked down at his hands, Sam vigorously shook his head no. More quietly, he said, "There aren't that many guys in your house anyways."

"I am not here for your game, so you money is safe." Jasper pulled a file folder out of the gym bag that he was carrying. He tossed it gently onto the poker table. "Actually, I am just here to drop off the final report of the fire I was investigating for you. Then, I was thinking about grabbing a beer across the street."

"Not that you care, but Alice is out with the girls tonight."

One of the other guys at the table asked, "You mean the fire out in the woods?"

"Mike Newton, right?" The guy nodded and Jasper continued, "That fire was deliberately set. There was a remote controlled, trap surrounding where Carlisle was injured. It could have been any one of us, but Carlisle was the unlucky one."

"Why are you saying it like that?" Sam asked as carefully placed his sleeping, little girl in her car seat.

"There were a total of nine other traps set up throughout the fire. Thankfully, and unfortunately, the only one that was triggered just happened to be the one Carlisle came upon. I just thank God that Edward was not that far away."

All of the men at the table slumped back in their chairs in unison. Jasper pulled up another chair and plopped down himself. Emmett rubbed his hands roughly over his face. Sam stared down at his daughter, either in guilt or relief of not being at that fire. One of the other guys pushed away from the table and walked out of the room.

The silence around the table was broken when Emmett pulled himself together and asked, "What about those traps? Can they still be triggered? Don't they need to be disabled?"

Jasper smiled. "They have already been taken care of. They have been disabled and the parts removed for three weeks now. Edward and I went out to take care of them ourselves. He has some weird sixth sense for reading an arsonist's mind. It is rather creepy to watch actually. We did not even know about the last two. Edward just found them."

"It sounds like we should be glad he is on our side. I would hate to come up against him if he had turned arsonist himself." Mike comments.

"Jasper, you know you could have mailed or even e-mailed that report."Sam said leaning back and scratching his chin.

"I was…" Jasper said starting to explain.

Another firefighter, Yorkie, interrupted him. "If he had done that, he could have really run into the lovely bar owner across the street."

"No. No, it is nothing like that." Jasper said quickly.

"Carlisle is going to want to hear all of this for himself. He will get a copy of the report, of course, but he will want to learn things straight from you and Edward." Emmett said thoughtfully, saving Jasper further teasing. "I will have to set up a barbeque at his house or a get together at the bar."

"Why?" Jasper asked confused.

Sam chuckled. "Esme doesn't want Carlisle coming in here. She thinks coming here or hearing about these things will add too much unnecessary stress."

"She won't be suspicious of a barbeque or a casual get together at the bar?" Jasper asked leaning forward in his chair to rest his elbows on his knees.

"Nope, Esme will be too busy plotting ways to make sure Alice is at the barbeque or that she doesn't have a beer soaked shirt on when you get there." Emmett said laughing.

"Why would that matter?" Jasper asked sitting back in his chair again.

Emmett rose from his chair and crossed to the kitchen to get a new soda. "Jasper, do you really think that I pay attention enough to notice your obsession with my cousin-in-law. Esme and my wife are the ones that keep bring up your habitual staring and goo-goo eyes."

"I don't make goo-goo eyes!" Jasper said indignantly. The rest of the table burst out laughing at him, but were cut short when the siren went off. All six chairs at the table scrapped against the floor as the men stood up.

Emmett yelled for the rest of the crew to hurry up and get to the truck. Sam called to the receptionist, Tanya, to come get his daughter. Mike chugged the rest of his soda as he jogged to the change room. Yorkie was tossing gear out to his fellow firefighters.

Slumping back in his chair, Jasper watched longingly as the other men hopped onto the fire truck. Emmett stuck his head out of the front passenger side window. "Whitlock, are you coming? That is unless you want to stay here and help Tanya change Leah's diapers."

Tanya giggled behind Jasper as she picked up Leah's car seat. He flipped Emmett the bird before running to get the extra set of gear that Yorkie held out to him. He hopped in the back of the truck cab.

Sam gunned the engine. Emmett turned around smirking. "I would have suggested a third option of going over to the bar, but my cousin-in-law won't be there for another hour or so."

"Do you have to be such an ass, Emmett?" Jasper asked rhetorically.

Emmett turned around to face the front. "I will be one as long as I am not Alice's ass. I don't think that I could handle you ogling me every time you come around."

Sam put a stop to Emmett's joking. "Gentlemen, get ready. The accident is just around the corner four blocks up. It is a two car accident. One car is empty. The other car has four female passengers. Two of the ladies are unconscious according to the witnesses on scene."

Emmett looked back with his hard earned authority etched on his face, "You heard him. Let the police handle the empty car. It is probably the same kids from last week. We check for any spark, any hint of fire. Get the women out safely with the paramedics' directions."

When the fire truck turned the corner, all of the men saw the massive, black Hummer pinning a small, orange Honda Fit to a brick wall.

* * *

_Author's Note~_

_The rest of this scene will be in the next post. I am not a huge fan of breaking things up like this, but that is just how it ends up sometimes.__ I really hope you are enjoying this story. Let me know what you think, like, love, or hate!_

_~KaliCali77_


	9. Rescue and Rosalie's Reveal

_I do not own the Twilight story or any of its characters or settings._

_I just like messing with Stephenie Meyer's characters in my own plots!_

**Rescue and Rosalie's Reveal**

Sam's normally golden russet skin grew deathly white. His hands seemed to become part of the wheel from him gripping it so tight. Emmett spud out a long string of expletives that would make even the crassest of sailors blush. Jasper head whipped from one man to another trying to discern his friends' reactions.

Mike took pity on the outsider. He quietly said, "The orange car is Emily, Sam's wife's, car. Rosalie, Angela, and Alice are out with her tonight."

* * *

The firefighters moved quickly to remove the trapped women from the totaled car.

Emmett yelled at Rosalie to cover herself and Emily in the driver's seat. Then, he smashed through the front window with his gloved hand. Rosalie had already cut her seatbelt off of her with the cuticle scissors from her purse. She was applying pressure to a deep wound on Emily's thigh.

"Emmett, where is Sam? She has lost a lot of blood." Rosalie explained over the noise of the men talking to Angela in the back of the car.

Emmett could see that for himself looking down at the medium size pool of blood on Emily's seat and the floorboard. He barked at his wife to give him the decorative scarf that she always has tied on her purse. Once she handed it to him, he tied it around the Emily's wound with Rosalie's help before he pulled her out of her seat.

Sam caught Rosalie as she scrambled off of the small car hood. "Sam, get up there and help Emmett with your wife."

"No!" Emmett yelled barely sparing a glance over his shoulder. "With our combined weight and the frame already damaged, the hood will collapse and crush Emily's lower legs. Just go get me a paramedic and a gurney. Emily is somehow going to come out in about one minute."

_**At the Same Time**_

"Jasper, help me with the back!" Mike yelled as they hopped off of the truck. "Emmett probably sees Rosalie's blonde hair in the front seat. There is no way he will let anyone get between him and her."

The two men jogged as fast as they could while lugging their heavy equipment. Jasper reached the hatchback door of the car first. He couldn't see through the back side windows because he was blocked by a brick wall and the Hummer. He tried peering through the back shattered, but still in place window. He could not see anything more than very vague shapes.

He yelled to the girls inside to watch for flying glass. He and Mike pushed on the glass. Jasper sighed in slight relief when the window went through the opening almost solidly.

"Angela, thanks for removing the headrests. Now, I need you to focus on Alice." Mike said calmingly to the doe eyed brunette that Jasper barely remembered from the night before at the Fire Pit. She nodded in understanding.

"Angela, is Alice breathing?" The terrified woman nodded emphatically.

"Is she awake?" Angela shook her head no.

"Has she been out since the impact?" Angela shrugged her shoulders and whispered "I don't know" as her eyes filled to the brim with tears.

"You are doing great, Ang." Mike said calmly as Rosalie slightly jostled the car as she climbed out the windshield opening. "Give Jasper and I just a minute and I will get you out of the car."

Angela whimpered slightly, but nodded in agreement.

Jasper whispered to Mike after the pulled their heads out of the back window opening and stood up. "Do you think that Angela would be able to put the back seat down and crawl out?"

"Of course, she can do it. The real question is will Angela leave an injured Alice." Mike answered rubbing his face. Seeing Emmett peeking up from where he was perched on the hood of the car, Mike yelled, "Emmett, what is your plan for getting Emily out?"

Emmett called back over the roof of the car, "Not sure yet. As gentle as possible, her body has been through enough traumas lately because of the baby."

"Jasper had an idea." Mike called back before pointing to Jasper to take the conversation.

"We are going to have Angela collapse one side of the backseat. After she crawls out, I will climb in with a medicine bag. I am going to work on the girls a little bit with the paramedics' help. You, Sam, and Mike will work on making this back opening bigger to get the back board in and out easier."

"That sounds a lot better than my idea of letting Sam tear through the car until we can get Emily out." Emmett said with a slight smirk on his face.

The men quickly began to implement Jasper's plan. Jasper did the little first aid that he could while the others widened the back opening. He cringed slightly when he saw Emily's leg, but Alice's wound scared him. She had a giant slash diagonally across her body from just below her left breast down to her right hip near the seat belt buckle. Looking around the back seat and the floor he didn't see a piece of glass that could have caused this injury.

As soon as Emily was out of the car, she was rushed to the ambulance. The paramedics put a better dressing on her leg and whisked her off to the hospital. Sam and Angela went along with her in the back of the ambulance.

In the second ambulance, the paramedics continued to work on Alice. They wanted to stabilize her before transport. Emmett was barking information at them about her medical history. Rosalie grabbed her husband and Jasper. She pulled them over to stand to the side of one of the open ambulance doors.

"You two have to listen to me and make the police understand what I am saying. This was no car accident. That Hummer came straight at us."

"Rosalie, are you sure that you aren't letting your imagination get away from you?" Emmett asked.

"Don't "Rosalie" me, Emmett McCarty." She snapped back. "No one listened to Alice and me before. Do you remember how that turned out?"

Jasper looked confused, but Emmett answered grudgingly. "Okay, okay. The Hummer came after Emily's car with the four of you in it. Then what happened?"

"Emily was out right away. The long, pointy umbrella that she had to buy had flown from beside me and speared her leg."

"That explains the long scratch across your face." Emmett said gingerly touching his wife's cheek.

"I didn't even realize that I was scratched. Anyways, I took it out because she started convulsing and I thought the umbrella still in her leg would make it worse."

"Stop right there." Jasper said with concerned authority in his voice. He relayed the new information about Emily to Sam before motioning for her to continue.

"Angela screamed herself crazy. I don't think she really knew what was going on until I slapped her across the face and told her to check on Alice. Alice had moaned a few times before the man appeared."

"The man… What man are you talking about?" Jasper jumped in quickly.

"A tall, lanky man jumped out of the Hummer and appeared quickly on the hood. He had a black baseball hat pulled down over his hair. The bill of it hid his face from me. He ignore Emily, Angela, and I. He went straight for Alice. It was like a flashback to when she was being stalked. One second, he was on the phone with 911. The next second, he squeezed his hand through Alice's open window and ran a blade across her."

One of the paramedics stuck his head out of the ambulance, "Alice is as stable as she is going to get without a doctor. If you plan on riding with us, you need to get in now."

Emmett hugged his wife before she left to join her cousin. Jasper stepped out of Emmett's way to let him join his wife. Emmett just shook his head. "I am needed here. I need to talk to the police as well. Go with Rosalie and Alice. Make sure they get there safely. Carlisle and Esme will meet you there."

* * *

_Author's Note~_

_Some of the things that happened in this post came from car accidents that I have been in. Other parts were inspired by scenes on the show Chicago Fire._

_I really hope you are enjoying this story. Let me know what you think, like, love, or hate!_

_~KaliCali77_


	10. Emergency Room Relief & Horror

_I do not own the Twilight story or any of its characters or settings._

_I just like messing with Stephenie Meyer's characters in my own plots!_

**Emergency Room Relief and Horror**

Rosalie stayed by her cousin's side in the ambulance ride, through the doctor's examination, and while Alice's stomach was being stitched up. Rosalie and Jasper were relieved when the doctor said while the cut was long, it was not that deep. Jasper stood outside the drawn curtain of the trauma room Alice was in. He had opted to give Alice some privacy while the slash she had received was being sewn up.

"Jasper, what the hell happened?" Carlisle called to the younger man as Esme pushed him quickly through the emergency room hallways. "All we know is what Sheriff Black told us, there was a car accident involving Alice and Rosalie. If that wasn't weird enough, he and his deputy son gave us a caravan-style police escort straight to the emergency room door."

"I don't know much more than you do." Jasper answered with his southern drawl becoming more pronounced as his stress increased.

"Jasper Whitlock, I may not know you very well, but I know that you are lying. Your accent always gets stronger when you are." Carlisle responded as he glared at the younger man. "My daughter is lying in a hospital bed right now. Please tell me what is going on."

"You should go in and see Alice." Jasper said taking a deep breath. "Once she is awake and more out of the woods, we can talk. I have a feeling that Emmett, Rosalie, and Alice will want to be in on this discussion."

Carlisle started to protest, but Esme calmed him. She crouched in front of him and held both of his strong hands in her petite ones. "Carlisle, our little girl needs us to be with her and to be strong right now. Our only child has been put in grave danger again and she needs us." Carlisle just nodded his head at his wife and followed his wife into the trauma room that Alice was in.

Rosalie stepped out of the room to give her aunt and uncle time with their daughter. Her face showed evidence of tears and pain. She was trying to hold it together, but the cracks were beginning to show. Jasper touched her shoulder. She turned toward him and wrapped her arms tightly around his shoulders in a warm, tight hug.

Jasper held her and rubbed her back trying to help calm her as her shoulders shook. Suddenly, Rosalie sighed and slumped in his arms. He gripped her tighter because he was now holding all of her weight. He adjusted her in his arms so that he could pick her up. He yelled for anyone to help.

Nurses, doctors, and Esme came running. Jasper was ushered quickly to the trauma room situated between Alice's and Emily's rooms. After lying her gently down on the gurney, he backed away so the medical staff could begin working on Rosalie.

Esme had followed the medical staff into the room. She reached to grab Jasper's arm to hold onto someone, but cringed at the slickness of his sleeve. She looked down and realized that his arm was now covered in Rosalie's blood. She screamed drawing attention to herself, her outstretched hand, and Jasper's arms.

One of the doctors started yelling the same question to him over and over, "Where were your arms placed on her body?" While another doctor ordered the nurses to help him gently turn Rosalie over.

Once Rosalie had been turned over, the answer to the first doctor's question was answered without Jasper saying a word. Her skirt had ridden up. The new placement of the pencil skirt's slit showed that blood was slowly flowing from Rosalie's body and painting the inside of her creamy thighs red.

* * *

_Author's Note~_

_I feel horrible that Rosalie had to be hurt when at first she seemed fine. The next post will bring everyone up to speed on Jasper, Emmett, and Rosalie's suspicions. I really hope I am doing the storyline in my head justice._

_~KaliCali77_


	11. A Short List

_I do not own the Twilight story or any of its characters or settings._

_I just like messing with Stephenie Meyer's characters in my own plots!_

**A Short List**

"Emmett, are you sure you and Rosalie are up to doing this?" Esme asked her niece's husband. "She just lost a baby less than 48 hours ago. Then, she had to have another surgery to stop the bleeding last night. I worry about the stress on her body as well as her mind."

Emmett stopped on his way out of Alice's hospital room. "Aunt Esme, you know as well as I do that not being in here with her family will do more harm than good. She will just sit in her room worrying herself to exhaustion alone. Moving her up here will keep her from jumping out of her bed and pacing. I hope."

"I hope so too, Emmett. I am afraid that Rosalie might have too much Cullen blood in her from my sister though." Carlisle said slamming his hands on the arms of his wheelchair placed low near his useless thighs. "I know if I could I would be pacing."

Emmett nodded his head in agreement and left with a nervous chuckle.

A few moments later, Rosalie was wheeled in sitting uncomfortably in a wheelchair with her husband by her side. Her long, wavy blonde hair was still up in the limp, messy bun that a nurse put it in before the 1 am second emergency surgery. Her normally glowing pale cream skin had turned ashen and pasty over the past couple of nights from the trauma and loss of blood. Emmett and a nurse moved her from the wheelchair to the hospital bed beside Alice's bed.

Once the extended family had experienced a short time to grieve over Rosalie and Emmett's loss, Jasper walked cautiously into the room. He was closely followed by Sheriff Billy Black and Deputy Jacob Black.

"Rosalie, I am sorry for your pain." He said before nodding to Emmett, who seemed to barely be holding on by a thin thread. "I hate to do this now, but the faster it is done the faster we can keep your family safe."

"Jasper, Jacob, and I have been discussing Alice's attack, the fire in the woods, and the car accident for the past several hours." Sherriff Billy Black started explaining. "Rosalie, you told Jasper and Emmett your view of what happened. Do you have anything else to add?"

She shook her head no as she pulled her husband into her bed beside her. He pulled her close and kissed her forehead.

"Carlisle, did you see anyone, with the exception of Edward Masen, near you when you got hurt during that fire?" The deputy asked bluntly.

"You can't be accusing Edward, can you?" Carlisle questioned loudly. He began rolling his wheelchair toward the young man. "He is the one that saved me. He pulled me out of the fire."

The hot-tempered deputy shot back. "We have to look at everyone. The only people that completely cleared of all of this are in this room and your friends next door. This is your family's lives we are talking about, Carlisle."

"That is enough, Jacob." His father said firmly in his calm voice. "The truth is Edward is very low on the list. He is the last name on the list to be exact. He is only on the list because of his proximity to Carlisle in the fire."

A short silence filled the hospital room, Rosalie broke the silence. "Who else is on the top of your list? Who else do you think is doing this to our family?"

Sherriff Black nodded to Rosalie, acknowledging her questions while not answering them. "Alice, you were attacked in Seattle."

"That is right, but the Seattle Police caught that guy. I didn't even know that just happened to have the same last name as me, Lyle Cullen. He became obsessed with me after accidently getting some of my mail. I have never even seen what he looked like before or during the attack. Then, I didn't see him when I gave my testimony on Skype while I was still in the hospital. Why?"

"Do you know that Lyle Cullen has been out of his psychiatric facility for five months?" Deputy Black asked knowing the negative answer the family would give.

Emmett piped up. "What the hell? Why weren't we informed? Rosalie was injured in that attack as well."

"I don't know why you weren't informed. I just found out myself when I called to confirm his placement. Jasper had the idea to check on him." The sheriff explained. "The doctors there believe that with mandatory, weekly, state paid for, counseling sessions Lyle can be a responsible citizen. Unfortunately, he only showed up for three sessions before disappearing."

"So, not only was he released, but he is now on the run?" Carlisle shouted in pure frustration. "I can't believe you people!"

Esme spoke from her position on Alice's bed. "Does anybody have a clue as to where this Lyle is at?"

Sherriff Black replied warily, "He has family in Florida and Arizona. Charlie Swan up in Forks is checking with the authorities in those areas. We are not holding out much hope of him being with family though."

Jasper snapped him gaze away from Alice's. "Why don't you think he is with family? You told me that looking in those places is a good lead."

The older man sighed. "His family never came to any of his court days or the trial. They never visited him. By all accounts, they haven't spoken in years."

Deputy Black jumped in to add. "Plus, he is a slippery character. He evaded arrest for almost a week after his attack on Alice."

"There is something you are not telling us." Alice said so quietly that she was barely heard by her mother in bed with her.

"What did you say, Alice?" Jasper asked crossing to her bed and squatting down next to it.

Alice huffed and spoke louder, "He is keeping something from us. There is something important that he knows, but isn't saying."

The entire room turned to look at the Sherriff, including his son. "How did you know?"

"The Seattle police tried to keep things from me when I was attacked. I have learned the face most police officers make when they are trying to give you the run around."

"You are right, Alice, maybe you should have been a detective."

"Stop stalling, Black." Jasper said as he absent-mindedly placed his hand over Alice's hand that was resting on the bed next to her thigh.

"Lyle has changed his appearance. His long black hair has been stripped of its color and cut off." Everyone's questioning face prompted the Sherriff to explain further. "When the probation officer went looking for him, they found some of his hair in the apartment's bathroom sink. They, also, found a contact lens container with brown color contacts in it."

Just then, a knocked came from the hospital room door before a male nurse with bleach, blonde short hair poked his head in. "I need to check Miss Cullen's dressings soon. Would now be a good time?"

Alice's hand flipped over and gripped Jasper's tightly. After glancing at her, Jasper said, "Give us a minute or two. Someone will come down and let a nurse know when Miss Cullen is available."

Once the nurse left, the deputy spoke. "We know this will be difficult, but we need you to help us. Please don't go anywhere alone. Also, if you think of anyone else that needs to be checked out, do not hesitate to call us."

"We should be getting back to the station." The Sherriff added before following his son out of the room. "Get some rest. I will be back with an update tomorrow morning."

Rosalie spoke into the silence that followed the police departure. "Did it sound like the list consists of anyone besides Lyle Cullen and Edward Masen to anyone else?'

* * *

_Author's Note~_

_This story has a couple of more twists in it. Hold on because all will be explained in the end._

_Sorry, it has been a while in between chapters lately. I got side-tracked with another plot that would not get out of my head._

_Like it, love it, hate it , Review please!_

_KaliCali77_


	12. The Someone Behind the Police Report

_I own nothing, but the plot & what it is about to reveal._

_Most of this chapter is the attack on Alice from the first person perspective of her attacker. His flashback is italicized. The _non-italicized words_ in the flashback are Lyle Cullen's thoughts. ~KaliCali77_

"Alice," Jasper said in a gentle, questioning tone. He felt that he could get her to open up about her past without everyone else being in her hospital room. Rosalie had just been discharged to rest at home. Esme and Carlisle would come up to visit their daughter after his physical therapy appointment. He only had a small window to get thins information from her. "I need some information from you. I need to hear about the night you were attacked in Seattle."

Alice tensed and then, winced because her stitches pulled. "Why? Why do you need to hear about that? Didn't you say yesterday that you have read the police report?"

"I have read the report. I still need to hear it from you. You can give me more details. You can answer questions if I have them. A police report cannot do that." Jasper explained. "Please tell me."

Alice closed her eyes and took a deep breath before beginning to explain the worst night in her life.

The man in the hall remembered the best in his.

* * *

**The Someone Behind the Police Report**

_I saw Alice and Rosalie leaving their apartment for the philosophy study group they are a part of. The girls left at exactly twenty after six every Thursday night for the past two months. One could practically set their watch to them._

_I followed the girls for a couple of blocks as they talked and gossiped. When they turned to take the short cut through the park, I smiled. I stepped off of the path and settled on a bench hidden from the path by trees, but I could still see through them. _

_Tonight is the night that I will proceed with my plan._

Twenty minutes… those bitches are twenty minutes late!_ I thought as I clenched my fist even tighter as it rested on the bench against my thigh. _If they don't get here in the next few minutes, my plan will fail. The patrol will be here in the next ten to fifteen minutes.

_Finally, the girls came around the far corner. They were laughing a little too loudly. Neither of them was walking in a straight path. Apparently, tonight they went to a drinking group than the philosophy study group._

_I pulled my cap down low over my eyes and pulled the wool scarf up over my nose, so they couldn't see my face if they decided to glance in my way. I tucked and the opening of my leather gloves to ensure that that were still on snugly. Pausing behind large boulders and thick tree trunks, I made my way back to the path._

_Like every other Thursday night, Alice and Rosalie took no notice of me. I passed them just before they reached a collection of small boulders. When I thought I could no longer be seen in their peripheral vision, I turned and snuck up behind them._

_Rosalie was easy to trip in her inebriated state. She fell hard on the boulders. Her head landed with a satisfying thunk. I guess Alice assumed Rosalie tripped on her own and attempted to help her cousin as she began to moan. _

_Before the little pixie got more than two steps, I had my left hand on her hip and my right hand on her shoulder. She made a small gasp, but thankfully didn't make any other noise when I pulled her back against my body._

"_You are going to do everything that I lead you to do or you will not be found in time to save you like your cousin will." He whispered in here ear. Alice nodded yes in understanding before I could even ask her to._

_Slipping my left hand to the small of Alice's back, I lead her toward the bench that I had recently vacated. Her eyes were darting everywhere except the bench._

_Once at the bench, I forced her to take off her jacket and her sweater. She shook with the possibility that I am planning on raping her entering her brain. That idea could not be further from my mind. I tossed the jacket to the ground out of my way. After rolling the sweater up, I tied it around her head like a blindfold making sure to leave her ears uncovered. Then, I took the small ball gag from my bag that was sitting next to the bench. She gasped as I put the rubber ball in her mouth and fastened the strap at the nape of her neck._

"_Sorry," I said smirking behind my scarf. "I can't have you drawing any attention to our bench just yet."_

_I left her standing in front of the bench as I walked around it to make sure the step was securely in place between the rungs of the backrest of the bench. Even with tapping them with different levels of force, they stayed perfectly in place. I was testing them one last time when Alice and I heard the mounted police officer turn onto the trail below us._

"_It sounds like your cousin is about to be found." I whispered just loud enough for her to hear me. "Too bad you are not going to have the same luxury." The two of us listened as the officer radioed for assistance and an ambulance._

_Alice tensed waiting to learn if her cousin was alive or dead as the officer hopped off of his horse. She breathed a sigh of relief around the gag in her mouth. Then, she tensed again as I placed my hands gently on her shoulders. I guess she had been paying more attention to the sounds in front of her than behind her._

_I pushed her slowly down to sit on the edge of the bench. She tried to inch back to avoid falling off, but I stopped her. I cannot let her feel what is behind her yet._

_I unwind the scarf from around my face and spread it out. I place the spread out scarf from the bottom of her ribs to the tops of her hips with her hands and forearms trapped underneath it. I laid the ends of it on the top of the bench back before rounding the bench again. I quickly slide the ends through the rungs of the backrest._

_As the ambulance arrives for Rosalie, I start slowly pulling Alice back toward her fate. She moves back a few inches before the knives' points pierced the skin on her lower back. The serrated bottom edge of the knife caused some damage when it went it, but it will cause even more if they try to pull it out when she is still alive. She whimpered moaned lightly as she was moved toward me._

_The knives are only three inches long so it only took a minute or so to have them fully sheathed in her body. She shuddered when I stopped pulling her backwards causing more damage to herself. She was still a good inch and a half from the back of the bench. I tied the scarf tightly behind the bench causing her body to bow around the knives. _

_After picking up my bag, I whispered into her ear. "Alice, someone will find you soon. The mounted police officer might remember seeing Rosalie walking with someone and send out a search party which is what you should hope for. My hope is that Rosalie's beauty outshines you and the ground keepers find you tomorrow morning."_

* * *

The man in the hall opened his as Alice finished her story. "A while after the ambulance left, the first officer found my purse and remembered that I had been with Rosalie." She took a deep breath trying to keep herself from crying. "I was in and out of consciousness for the next few days. All I could clearly remember about the attack for a long time was he smelled like flowers. He did not smell like all flowers, just the sweet smelling flowers that hummingbirds are attracted to."

"That is why Emmett advised me against getting you a bouquet of Honeysuckle." Jasper said absentmindedly.

"Exactly," Alice answer thinking out loud as well. Then, she paused, "What? Why did you want to get me flowers? I already got the department flowers."

Jasper cleared his throat. Reaching for her hand, he said, "I hope I am more than just the department."

"Of course, you are more than just the department." Alice said squeezing his hand back. "You are becoming a friend, Jasper. You are trying to help save my family's lives."

"I am glad you see it as your friend because I am going to be camping on your couch for immediate future." Jasper said smiling. "That is unless you want to move back in with your parents."

* * *

_Author's Note~_

_I promise I am not a really a sick or twisted person. I do watch a lot of police and medical shows. The park in this scene is completely made up in my head. I have no idea if a park like this exists in Seattle or if there are mounted police officers. Those things are just what I needed for my story to work in my head._

_Stating that, I hope you learned something from this chapter. The next chapter will be Jasper and Alice settling in. Let me know what you think!_

_~KaliCali77_


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